The Nationaw Institute of Standards and Technowogy (NIST) is a measurement standards waboratory, and a non-reguwatory agency of de United States Department of Commerce. Its mission is to promote innovation and industriaw competitiveness.

The Articwes of Confederation, ratified by de cowonies in 1781, contained de cwause, "The United States in Congress assembwed shaww awso have de sowe and excwusive right and power of reguwating de awwoy and vawue of coin struck by deir own audority, or by dat of de respective states—fixing de standards of weights and measures droughout de United States". Articwe 1, section 8, of de Constitution of de United States (1789), transferred dis power to Congress; "The Congress shaww have power...To coin money, reguwate de vawue dereof, and of foreign coin, and fix de standard of weights and measures".

In January 1790, PresidentGeorge Washington, in his first annuaw message to Congress stated dat, "Uniformity in de currency, weights, and measures of de United States is an object of great importance, and wiww, I am persuaded, be duwy attended to", and ordered Secretary of StateThomas Jefferson to prepare a pwan for Estabwishing Uniformity in de Coinage, Weights, and Measures of de United States, afterwards referred to as de Jefferson report. On October 25, 1791, Washington appeawed a dird time to Congress, "A uniformity of de weights and measures of de country is among de important objects submitted to you by de Constitution and if it can be derived from a standard at once invariabwe and universaw, must be no wess honorabwe to de pubwic counciw dan conducive to de pubwic convenience", but it was not untiw 1838, dat a uniform set of standards was worked out.

In 1901, in response to a biww proposed by Congressman James H. Soudard (R, Ohio), de Nationaw Bureau of Standards was founded wif de mandate to provide standard weights and measures, and to serve as de nationaw physicaw waboratory for de United States. (Soudard had previouswy sponsored a biww for metric conversion of de United States.) [4]

Chart of NBS activities, 1915

President Theodore Roosevewt appointed Samuew W. Stratton as de first director. The budget for de first year of operation was $40,000. The Bureau took custody of de copies of de kiwogram and meter bars dat were de standards for US measures, and set up a program to provide metrowogy services for United States scientific and commerciaw users. A waboratory site was constructed in Washington, DC, and instruments were acqwired from de nationaw physicaw waboratories of Europe. In addition to weights and measures, de Bureau devewoped instruments for ewectricaw units and for measurement of wight. In 1905 a meeting was cawwed dat wouwd be de first "Nationaw Conference on Weights and Measures".

Initiawwy conceived as purewy a metrowogy agency, de Bureau of Standards was directed by Herbert Hoover to set up divisions to devewop commerciaw standards for materiaws and products.[4]page 133 Some of dese standards were for products intended for government use, but product standards awso affected private-sector consumption, uh-hah-hah-hah. Quawity standards were devewoped for products incwuding some types of cwoding, automobiwe brake systems and headwamps, antifreeze, and ewectricaw safety. During Worwd War I, de Bureau worked on muwtipwe probwems rewated to war production, even operating its own faciwity to produce opticaw gwass when European suppwies were cut off. Between de wars, Harry Diamond of de Bureau devewoped a bwind approach radio aircraft wanding system. During de Second Worwd War, miwitary research and devewopment was carried out, incwuding devewopment of radio propagation forecast medods, de proximity fuze and de standardized airframe used originawwy for Project Pigeon, and shortwy afterwards de autonomouswy radar-guided Bat anti-ship guided bomb.

In 1948, financed by de Air Force, de Bureau began design and construction of SEAC, de Standards Eastern Automatic Computer. The computer went into operation in May 1950 using a combination of vacuum tubes and sowid-state diode wogic. About de same time de Standards Western Automatic Computer, was buiwt at de Los Angewes office of de NBS and used for research dere. A mobiwe version, DYSEAC, was buiwt for de Signaw Corps in 1954.

Due to a changing mission, de "Nationaw Bureau of Standards" became de Nationaw Institute of Standards and Technowogy in 1988.[3]

NIST had an operating budget for fiscaw year 2007 (October 1, 2006 – September 30, 2007) of about $843.3 miwwion, uh-hah-hah-hah. NIST's 2009 budget was $992 miwwion, and it awso received $610 miwwion as part of de American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.[6] NIST empwoys about 2,900 scientists, engineers, technicians, and support and administrative personnew. About 1,800 NIST associates (guest researchers and engineers from American companies and foreign countries) compwement de staff. In addition, NIST partners wif 1,400 manufacturing speciawists and staff at nearwy 350 affiwiated centers around de country. NIST pubwishes de Handbook 44 dat provides de "Specifications, towerances, and oder technicaw reqwirements for weighing and measuring devices".

NIST is headqwartered in Gaidersburg, Marywand, and operates a faciwity in Bouwder, Coworado. NIST's activities are organized into waboratory programs and extramuraw programs. Effective October 1, 2010, NIST was reawigned by reducing de number of NIST waboratory units from ten to six.[9] NIST Laboratories incwude:[10]

As part of its mission, NIST suppwies industry, academia, government, and oder users wif over 1,300 Standard Reference Materiaws (SRMs). These artifacts are certified as having specific characteristics or component content, used as cawibration standards for measuring eqwipment and procedures, qwawity controw benchmarks for industriaw processes, and experimentaw controw sampwes.

NIST pubwishes de Handbook 44 each year after de annuaw meeting of de Nationaw Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM). Each edition is devewoped drough cooperation of de Committee on Specifications and Towerances of de NCWM and de Weights and Measures Division (WMD) of de NIST. The purpose of de book is a partiaw fuwfiwwment of de statutory responsibiwity for "cooperation wif de states in securing uniformity of weights and measures waws and medods of inspection".

NIST has been pubwishing various forms of what is now de Handbook 44 since 1918 and began pubwication under de current name in 1949. The 2010 edition conforms to de concept of de primary use of de SI (metric) measurements recommended by de Omnibus Foreign Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988.[12][13]

In 2002 de Nationaw Construction Safety Team Act mandated NIST to conduct an investigation into de cowwapse of de Worwd Trade Center buiwdings 1 and 2 and de 47-story 7 Worwd Trade Center. The "Worwd Trade Center Cowwapse Investigation", directed by wead investigator Shyam Sunder,[14] covered dree aspects, incwuding a technicaw buiwding and fire safety investigation to study de factors contributing to de probabwe cause of de cowwapses of de WTC Towers (WTC 1 and 2) and WTC 7. NIST awso estabwished a research and devewopment program to provide de technicaw basis for improved buiwding and fire codes, standards, and practices, and a dissemination and technicaw assistance program to engage weaders of de construction and buiwding community in impwementing proposed changes to practices, standards, and codes. NIST awso is providing practicaw guidance and toows to better prepare faciwity owners, contractors, architects, engineers, emergency responders, and reguwatory audorities to respond to future disasters. The investigation portion of de response pwan was compweted wif de rewease of de finaw report on 7 Worwd Trade Center on November 20, 2008. The finaw report on de WTC Towers—incwuding 30 recommendations for improving buiwding and occupant safety—was reweased on October 26, 2005.[15]

Since 1989, de director of NIST has been a Presidentiaw appointee and is confirmed by de United States Senate,[16] and since dat year de average tenure of NIST directors has fawwen from 11 years to 2 years in duration, uh-hah-hah-hah. Since de 2011 reorganization of NIST, de director awso howds de titwe of Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technowogy. Fifteen individuaws have officiawwy hewd de position (in addition to four acting directors who have served on a temporary basis).

NIST responded to de awwegations, stating dat "NIST works to pubwish de strongest cryptographic standards possibwe" and dat it uses "a transparent, pubwic process to rigorouswy vet our recommended standards".[21] The agency stated dat "dere has been some confusion about de standards devewopment process and de rowe of different organizations in it...The Nationaw Security Agency (NSA) participates in de NIST cryptography process because of its recognized expertise. NIST is awso reqwired by statute to consuwt wif de NSA."[22] Recognizing de concerns expressed, de agency reopened de pubwic comment period for de SP800-90 pubwications, promising dat "if vuwnerabiwities are found in dese or any oder NIST standards, we wiww work wif de cryptographic community to address dem as qwickwy as possibwe”.[23] Due to pubwic concern of dis cryptovirowogy attack, NIST rescinded de EC-DRBG awgoridm from de NIST SP 800-90 standard.[24]